Freedom and Development in "Caritas in Veritate"

Abstract

The article examines the relationship between freedom and development in Caritas in Veritate, showing how Benedict XVI proposes a conception of human development grounded in the truth of the person and in the relational nature of human existence. The author argues that freedom cannot be understood merely as individual autonomy but reaches its fulfilment in openness to others, responsibility and charity. From this perspective, integral human development requires an anthropology capable of integrating freedom, truth and the common good, thereby offering new criteria for understanding social and political life.